See Spot........Run! English Lessons with the Fear of the Coronavirus

I teach private English lessons in northern Italy. I have the lessons at my home, at bars (that's Italian for coffee shops) and at students' offices and homes.  For many people here, life with the coronavirus has had to continue as normal.  People wash their hands a bit more often (hopefully) but they still go to work.  Fortunately for me, the choice is mine. 

The first week of the outbreak, I only had two lessons.  The first was at my house where we modified our seating arrangement.  Instead of sitting across from each other with the narrow table between us, we sat at the ends, getting as close to the suggested two meter safety zone as possible.

*What happened to Dick and Jane?

Regardless of the distance, I was nervous.  I opened and closed the door so my student wouldn't touch it, tried not to breathe too deeply, stifled little coughs in my elbow and checked for tiny water spots on my notes that might make the ink run.  I have to (and hate to) admit that I use my cell phone as a dictionary. But now instead of sliding it across the table for her to take a look, I took a screen shot and sent a message from my end to hers.  When we finished the lesson, I opened and closed the door again and waited for her to drive away.  Then I put on my plastic gloves, cleaned her chair with alcohol and put the tablecloth in the washer.  

The second lesson was at a student's lab.  I usually meet him at the church's recreation center, but a place swarming with ping-pong playing kids and roaming retirees leaving the matinee didn't seem like the best place to avoid the virus.  My student is a chemist and spends his days alone testing buckles, rivets, leather, snaps, zippers and anything else that has to do with the designer fashion industry in Italy.  His lab is spotless and the air is recirculated 50 times a day.  It seemed like a good place to get my feet wet to re-enter normal life (if you can call a laboratory a place for normal life).  We kept our distance and he opened and closed the doors for me so I wouldn't infect his lab.  My parting gift was a mask.

As we come to the close of the second week, lessons are getting easier.  I've added a leaf to my kitchen table due to the conflicting reports on the real safety distance, and if need be, I can add another.  I've offered Skype lessons, writing lessons and a discount price for a "walk and talk in English". And just as I've started finding my courage, they announced that schools will be closed for a third week.  It's kind of like hearing you've got a 'snow day', but the snow is volcanic ash.


*Photo caption not intended for children under 40 (or Italians).